Ricordea Health?

[Dlhirst]

Last Summer, there was a week of really warm weather during a time that I was out of town. As my wife doesn't use the AC anywhere near like I do, my tank got quite warm. The water was probably in the mid-80s for a week or more, before I noticed that ALL my ricordeas were just melting away. Well, all save one colony of blues. I started keeping RODI water in the fridge, and would replenish with that cool water to keep the temp down, and also kept the lid off the tank when the lights were on. Still, I lost all my rics except that one colony.

All of the tank parameters were in line with where they have always been. Except of course, the temperature.

pH ~8.2
Alk ~2.8
NH3 < 0.25
NO3 < 2.5
Ca ~430
Mg ~1300+


I really love the ricordeas, so of course, I was crushed by the loss. Until that time, they had all been thriving quite well. Ironically, I had considered them my most (re)productive corals. Now, I am wanting to put some more back in the tank, but I am worried that I am missing some other part of the equation. Is there anything thing that ricordeas might need that other corals would not? A trace element, or perhaps something else that I need to solve for, first?

Any help is appreciated!

[strike2867]

Place a fan to blow across the top of the water. You'll get slightly more evaporation but the temperature goes down several degrees. If you have a sump, you can also place it there. Having Ammonia in the tank is strange, can someone else chime in on that. Everything else is good. Ricordias(I'm guessing you have Florida) like lower light and lower flow. But I'm sure you already know that.

[Dlhirst]

I have the "cooling thing" figured out now. Here in Michigan, and with the lighting I have, this shouldn't be a big issue. Just something I need to be aware of next Summer.

As for the ammonia, I am using the Red Sea test kit that came with my "MAX" tank. Every time I test it - it suggests something "just shy of 0.25", but every time the lfs's test it, they tell me "0". Perhaps the Red Sea test kit just runs a little off, but I always report it as I read it...

And, I did/will keep the rics near the bottom of a tank with not overpowering lighting anyway, so that should be OK. As I mentioned, they really DID thrive until that 34 gallon heat wave.

Thanks for the help.

[strike2867]

Originally Posted by Dlhirst

I have the "cooling thing" figured out now. Here in Michigan, and with the lighting I have, this shouldn't be a big issue. Just something I need to be aware of next Summer.

As for the ammonia, I am using the Red Sea test kit that came with my "MAX" tank. Every time I test it - it suggests something "just shy of 0.25", but every time the lfs's test it, they tell me "0". Perhaps the Red Sea test kit just runs a little off, but I always report it as I read it...

And, I did/will keep the rics near the bottom of a tank with not overpowering lighting anyway, so that should be OK. As I mentioned, they really DID thrive until that 34 gallon heat wave.

Thanks for the help.

Just seems like a lot of work to keep the RO/DI in the fridge. But summer up here is always tough.

[zachfishman]

My little 6" fan keeps my 29 at a level 80F all summer (on a controller).

[Dlhirst]

Keeping water in the fridge is no problem for me. I work at a company that has HUGE RODI filters, and get water "on demand". I can instantly fill 4 - 5 gallon buckets with it, so I just bring them home and store them in the garage, right next to the spare refrigerator. 2 qt pitcher of water in the cold, and I have top off water when I need it. And, at the low temp that the refrigerator makes it, I don't wanna add more than that at one anyway...